The thing about Heatmore
by Pippinumpkin
Summary: OC/Newton After the christened ‘titan incident’ Newton finds himself in yet another spot of trouble after he crash lands his air ship. (For anybody who knows my oc, Liesl, this is how her and Newton meet. If you haven’t heard of her, she’s on my deviantart!)
1. Something actually happens

A/N: Okay first off I want to say a big fat SORRY for any bad formatting- I wrote this on my laptop and transferred it to my phone because it won't let me upload on my laptop for some mysterious reason. So I've edited as best as I can to make it work on here, but it might still be dodgy in some places.

Liesl lived in Heatmore, where nothing really happened. It was hot, dry, kind of sandy and had a great volcano that overlooked the run-down town that Liesl lived just on the fringes of. It was one of those towns that made you lose faith in stitch-anity; it was greasy and grimy and full of unsavoury business, like MURDER. Okay, not murder. Usually. More like… money swindling and… theft. But Liesl liked to think that behind the scenes MURDER happened too- just to spice things up. After all, it was a boring, dead town. Nothing happened. Nothing ever happened, which was why she was rather surprised when, one day, she drew back her bedroom curtains and saw a spaceship had crash landed in her backyard.

It took a few moments for the peculiar sight to be computed by her foggy brain, but once it had got the general gist that SOMETHING had actually HAPPENED in HEATMORE, she let out an unearthly shriek, yanked open her bedroom door and almost fell down the stairs on her way to the backdoor.

Meanwhile, the 'space craft', or so it was thought of by the aforementioned spectator, was busy dropping all of its parts, some of which looked kind of important and necessary for it to fly. The door flung open and a flume of steam exploded into the cool morning air, before a little man tumbled out just as Liesl barrelled into the garden at high speed, fists at the ready.

"A'ight! Put 'em up, punk!" The little candle grasped the cuff of the alien's shirt with her hands and shoved him up against the side of his contraption. "I'll punch you to ribbons!"

"I rather think the phrase you're looking for is 'cut you to ribbons.'" The strange alien, whom now she was looking at closely and saw that he appeared to have a transparent head with a few cracks at the corners, dared to retort to her threat.

"Shuddup!" (Liesl had learnt that the best way to respond to come-backs was to pretend they hadn't been spoken in the first place.) She squinted at him, scanning his glowing eyes and trying to figure out whether he was a threat or not. Really, everyone around here was, so it wasn't a question she should even bother asking… although this little guy seemed a little different somehow.

He also seemed to have a concussion; his head was rising and falling, and his focus was definitely not where it should be- on her. "'Scuse me." He slurred, before his head fell to his chest and stayed there.

"Huh." Liesl let him go and stared at him as he slumped to the dirty ground. The western TV series and her… interesting,childhood had not taught her how to deal with a threat once they passed out in your arms. So, naturally, she hauled him into the house, and put him into bed.

"You're a disgrace to this family." The scowl on his father's face cut deep into his heart, and Newton felt himself scrambling backwards across the floor to try and escape the harshness of it.

"You're an embarrassment, you should be stuffed into a box like the titans."

"A pathetic excuse for a son."

"You're useless."

It hadn't gotten to the point where he couldn't tell whether the voice was coming from the apparition of his father, or from somewhere else. Suddenly they seemed all around him, echoing in the sky, chasing him as he began to run- but to where? The space that he was running into just seemed to get darker and darker, more and more shadows fell over his path until he was completely engulfed in darkness. The voices were everywhere now, and it felt like they were eating him alive-

"HelloOOO? Do you take SUGAR?"

Newton burst awake, limbs scattering everywhere as he struggled to orientate himself. Once he had managed to turn himself right ways up and sit, he saw that the strange candle lady from one of his fragmented dreams was standing in front of him, tray in her hands, on which was a box of sugar cubes next to two cups of steaming coffee.

"Oh sorry, you probably still have concussion, huh?" She broke into a smile. "Do you take sugar?" She 'whispered' in a voice that was barely louder than the first.

He blinked slowly, looking around the room in a haze. "Where… Where am I? Are you… a fairy?"

"Ay! Call me a fairy I'll knock your block off!" She shook her fist, briefly forgetting about the tray in her arms and spilling scalding coffee on her arm. A large chunk of wax dripped off, and was quickly replaced from…. within her arm?? "I'm not a fairy! I'm Liesl Boulanger and I'm the last face you'll ever see if you keep with the attitude!"

Newton flung his hands in front of his face, shaking. "I- uh! I didn't mean to push any buttons!"

"Damn right you didn't!" She looked incredibly pleased with herself for some reason, and was eyeing up his worried face. "Who're you?"

"Me?" He pointed to himself, "I- I'm Newton. I don't- could you please tell me where I am?"

"Fufufufu…" She set the tray down on a bedside table and planted her hands on her hips. "You're in Heatmore, buddy!"

"Heat…more?" Confusion swelled in his brain in such excess his head hurt, causing him to clutch it and groan. "I've never heard of it."

"Gah! There you go again with the attitude!" Liesl fumed, taking it upon herself to sit on the side of the bed he was tucked up in.

Wait- how did he get into a bed? Surely she hadn't-

"Your big ass ship thing crashed in my Dad's backyard." She gave him a toothy grin, explaining as if having read his mind. "He's a bit… difficult, but don't worry, he's not here at the moment. So where are you from?"

"N-needlepoint? Th… The mountains." He slid further down under the covers. "My head- it hurts…"

"Needlepoint? Never heard of that neither." Liesl shrugged. "I'll say astronaut boy! You've got cracks all over your shiny head!"

"Wait- what?!" Newton bolted up straight in panic. "I- I need a mirror!"

Liesl paused. "Well… Okay." She turned around and rummaged through a dresser for some time until she found what she was looking for; a small hand-held mirror that she then handed to Newton.

Shaking, he followed his finger along a large, jagged cut that ran from his forehead just over the top of his eye. "Oh-oh no-"

"Hey, it's not that bad!"

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to see her face fixed in a confident smile. "I've seen worse. Anyway, it makes you look totally bad ass!"

"M-me? Bad ass?" He almost smiled. "Thank you…?"

"Oh yeah! The coffee." Liesl picked up the tray from table and placed it on his lap, over the covers.

"C-coffee? You don't have tea do you?-" He saw the murderous glint in her eyes and quickly picked up the cup and had a sip. "I mean, coffee is uh, lovely!"

Liesl let out a deep sigh and slid off the side of the mattress to the tiled floor, and rested her back against the side of the bed. "Good. I think you should rest for a bit." She gazed towards the window. "I guess… we'll worry about that ship thing of yours later."

There was a metallic 'click' from down the stairs, and a sound of a door opening. Newton watched as Liesl's expression went from neutral to slightly fearful. "Oh. He's back already?" She got to her feet and looked around uncertainly for a moment. "I wonder when he'll notice the back-"

"What the bloody hell- LIESL!"

"That was quick!" Liesl cursed, and gave him a smile that seemed to be to try and calm his nerves, but only looked a bit manic. "Be right back." She hopped out of the room and he faintly heard the thumps of her going down the stairs.

He took this moment to lean back against his pillow and take a breath. So, this was a place called Heatmore…? He had crashed his air ship here… oh, that's right; he had run out after having an argument with Papa…

Papa… Newton gathered the duvet up around his chest and rested his chin upon it. So… he was right about me being a failure… I couldn't even run away without crashing and causing more trouble for people around me… At least he could remember that though. From the size of the crack across his head, he thought he would have forgotten. There was still about the matter of his ships repairs though. His father was the one who had built it after all, could Newton really repair it and make it sky worthy again? He supposed he would find out.

He lifted his head as the bedroom door opened again, revealing a worried looking Liesl and a very… very tall intimidating man who looked like Liesl, but sharper in every feature, and dressed in the drabbest grey robes Newton had ever seen.

"Uh… Huh-hello-" He began sheepishly, but his unwitting host had already flown to the side of the bed and was looming over him with a glare set to kill.

"Do you have any idea of the cost of the damage you've caused to my property?" He hissed, nearing his face to Newton's.

"I can pay!" He quickly blurted out. "W-well, my Papa can…"

"Your Papa, eh? …Ah, I know you." The tall candle stick stepped back. "You're Captain Pud's son. That cretin who almost ended the world a few months back."

"Woah- you're that Newton?" Liesl gawked from behind her father.

He turned his glare onto her until she flinched, then back to Newton.

"You better not bring trouble here, or you'll find our punishments are much. More severe." He drew back. "I suppose I have no choice but to let you stay… for now. After all, I'll need to bill you for the damage you've done and ask you to remove your vehicle from my back yard."

"Liesl, you see to our 'guest', if you can find it in yourself to handle that. Don't trouble me. Is that clear?"

"…Yeah." Liesl didn't take her eyes from him until he fled the room, the door slamming behind him.

After a few moments, she bounded back up to Newton's side, "You see what I mean? Grumpy bastard. We better stay clear of him, he's always in a bad mood."

Newton stared at her astounded, pity blooming in his chest. "That's your Papa?"

"The one and only." Liesl snorted, and a puff of smoke flared from the end of the wick sticking out from her head. "It's okay. It's not so bad around here when you get over all the guys who live here."

Everyone who lives here…? But that's more or less the entire town. He nodded, but made a mental note to hurry out of this place as fast as he could.


	2. Down town yo

Liesl was awoken by a gentle shudder of the earth, and hissed at the sun beginning to shine through her curtains. As soon as she caught a glimpse of the sun, it was like her mind switched on and forbid her from going back to sleep until it set later in the day.

She was fed up of these strange little earthquakes that had recently began to frequent the town, especially the ones in the morning. It was probably just some kind of build of magma or something under the surface of the town, but still. Natural or not, it needed to hurry up and sort itself out so she could get back to sleeping in. Sleeping was one of the only things to do in the desolate place, after all.

As she lay there thinking, she remembered Newton. Oh yeah. I wonder what he's doing right now?

Getting to her feet, she headed to the spare bedroom that she had offered him a place to stay in.

Without knocking, she nudged open the door and was treated to an impressive view.

Really, she shouldn't judge in what state other people chose to sleep, but his magnificent form immediately caught her eye and filled her with both awe and judgement.

It was…

It was…

The strangest sleeping position she had ever seen in her life!What was he doing? Trying to break his neck? Trying to do a handstand in his sleep? Why and how did his legs get over the head-rest of the bed?!

Her mischievous nature got the better of her.

She filled her lungs with air.

"BOO!"

"AUGH!" He twisted and rolled out of his awkward position in surprise and then smacked face first onto the floor.

Liesl chortled to herself, before realising that scaring an already injured guest had probably not been the best idea. "Ah- are you okay?" She leant over the help him to his feet.

"I've seen… better days… ough…"

She fixed him up a drink; tea this time, as a sort of wordless apology.

"So, is there anywhere I can buy machine parts from in this town?" Newton asked her over tea and toast.

Liesl searched back through her memory banks. She wasn't exactly an inventor herself. The only shops she knew were the casino, the pub, a music store and the grocery store. Anywhere else was kind of shrouded in a mysterious mist of 'never been there'.

"Um… maybe? Probably. I have a feeling that there is a probability of like 30% that there is."

Newton looked at her skeptically, and she blanched.

"I do! But only kind of! If you lived around here, you'd know it's best not to wander too far." She leant on her fist sulkily.

Aha, now he looked a little scared. "What do you mean?"

"You haven't figured it out? You've landed in one of the shadiest towns in the Imagisphere!" She gestured wildly, surprised and also endeared by that naivety. It had been so long that she had spoken to anyone outside of Heatmore.

Seeing the look on his face, she added, "But it's alright, just stick with me. I know my way around and where to avoid. And if anyone messes with you, I'll knock 'em out!"

"A-ah, okay." He still looked troubled, but didn't dismiss the idea of venturing out entirely. "I'll have a proper look at my airship after breakfast, and I'll put together a list of the parts I need. That is… if I can even fix it."

Confusion swamped over her. He had seemed so confident- okay maybe not confident, like he kind of knew what he was doing- a moment ago. "If?"

"My Papa built it. I made some refinements, but… as for how it works inside and out I… I'm not even close to being on his level." He looked so disheartened for a moment that Liesl felt the urge to reach over and take his hand.

"It'll be fine. You were smart enough to fly it, even if you did end up crashing it this time." She settled for a pat on his arm. "Besides, you've got me to help!"

"You- you would help me? Really?" He blinked at her, wide eyed.

"Of course! What else are friends for?"

"Friends…" He seemed deep in thought, then smiled at her, cheerfulness rejuvenated. "Alright then! We'll start preparations this afternoon!"

It turned out that Liesl didn't even know the difference between a spanner and a wrench.

"I never said I could help with that stuff!" She protested when he complained. "I can lift stuff for you! That's… that's about it." She looked embarrassed. "I'm not… not smart like that.My father likes to refer to it as 'not being suitable to be unsupervised, are you crazy, Liesl.'"

Newton sighed, but smiled on the inside. She may not be an engineer, but… She's willing to help me.

"Well… it's a start, dear chum! If you would be good enough to escort me down town, I have a list of parts I need to pick up. …Hopefully we'll find a place that sells them…"

"We will!" Liesl nodded confidently, then took him by the wrist and began to march off.

Newton yelped, and stumbled into a run in order to avoid being yanked over; gosh she was strong! His heart skipped a beat when she looked back round at him, looking… surprised?It suited her. But didn't she know her grip was pure iron- ow ow ow!

"Ee! A little- uh, a little looser if you wouldn't mind." He gasped, finally managing to keep up with her purposeful strides.

She giggled to herself. "Sorry." Her grip loosened, until she seemed to be reassured of his ability to walk on his own, and her fingers unclasped his wrist.

For the first time, Newton took in just how barren and lifeless the landscape was. Orange-y, cracked ground sprawled for miles. There was no sign of any near by villages on the horizon, just more sloping hills, cliffs, rocks, a volcano… …OH MY GOODNESS THERE WAS A VOLCANO RIGHT BY THE TOWN.

"Uhh Lieesl?" His voice cracked, but his nerves wouldn't let him be embarrassed right now. Not when there was a 10,000FEET VOLCANO RIGHT BESIDE THE PLACE HE WAS CURRENTLY STAYING IN.

A small sound that sounded like it might be amused laughter came from her general direction. "It's fine. It's been inactive for like… forever. Nothing's been happening up there, trust me."

They reached the top of a dusty hill, and Liesl swept her arms about in front of them. "That's the town."

Newton goggled. It was like… an old western town. Every now and then, there was a weird flash of modern technology, but for the most part, it seemed stuck in 'ye old cowboy land'.In any case, he understood what his new friend meant now; this place looked rough. The kind of place that looked like if you crossed a person's path twice they'd put a bullet in your skull, and your stuffing on their wall.

He quickly hid behind her, mind racing a hundred miles an hour. Was it really safe enough to just walk down there?

Liesl didn't laugh this time, but hit her fist against her palm a couple of times. "We're going in! It's fine. Just act natural!"

And so, they strolled down the hill until the dried ground slowly trailed into a paved road and they met the city.

Looking 'natural' wasn't exactly the easiest advice to follow; especially when you were scared out of your mind. Besides, how could he blend in when he had no idea of how people usually acted in this town?? He didn't fit into his own place, let alone here! Newton clung to the brown ribbon around Liesl's dress as she marched through town like she owned the place, and judging by the annoyed looks she was getting, she definitely didn't. They passed rows and rows of run-down houses- they were all so battered it was impossible to tell the difference between occupied or abandoned property, like seriously, how did these people keep warm or secure?

A massive building suddenly came into view, a gem amongst the rubble. It was modern, flashy, it's lights blared and energetic music pumped out of its glass doors that were constantly swinging open and closed as stitch folk passed through them.

"What's… that?" Newton tugged on Liesl's dress, causing her to look, and then groan.

"The casino." She frowned, quickly lowering her gaze back down to the ground. "Avoid it. It may look flashy, but the guys who run it are a couple of punks you don't want to mess with."

Despite her warnings, Newton couldn't help but let his gaze linger on the building a little longer. From behind the glass a slim figure appeared, a black and red jester hat sewn onto his paper thin body. Their eyes met, and the strange man gave him a sleezy wink that sent a cold shiver down his spine. Then he was gone.

"Hey, I told you not to awk!" Liesl urged him. "C'mon, there'll probably be a place like what you're looking for down here."

He gulped, still feeling the aftermath of that look. There was something off about it, and he found he didn't want to dwell on it. "C-coming!"


	3. A well earned biscuit break

The parts had been obtained! Newton felt like he deserved a sticker after all that effort. One of those shiny ones of course, not those bland old paper-y ones that came off with just one scratch. The parts were second hand, a little worn around the edges, but they looked good enough- good enough to get him home at least. It was a little (a lot of) effort for the weak muscles on his arms to tug his loot back to Liesl's, but with her help they made it back in under half an hour, in time to have lunch. Which was… seared tuna sandwiches.

Newton wanted to ask why it was necessary to toast the tuna like that; it just made it hard and chewy, but Liesl seemed to like it, and remembering the coffee incident, Newton decided to just be quiet and eat it. It tasted alright. It was enough food to think on, at least.

As he had established a few hours prior, Liesl wasn't a mechanic. That didn't stop her from keeping him company, however, and singing little repetitive tunes over… and over… and OVER…

Newton had rolled up his sleeves and was examining the main bulk of the engine. It was a complete wreck. Pipes had fallen out of place, the oil had leaked… he'd need to take it all out, clean it, and then reassemble the damn thing, and with what; his head, and the screwy stash of old tools he had hiding in the back of his air ship? He tiredly rubbed at his face as his situation sunk in, and caught a glimpse of the smear of oil he had just wiped across his forehead in the reflection of the ship's panelling. So that was it. He really did look like an idiot.

His life was just one mistake after the next. He wondered if his Papa was looking for him, and what thoughts were going through his head. He was probably worrying about what small village, town, or city Newton had managed to destroy in his absence. Distracted, he managed to lose his grip on a pipe he had just pulled from the engine, and cursed as it hit the ground and sent another splash of oil smack into his shirt. That was another thing… He didn't even have a change of clothes. Asking Liesl to borrow some was a possibility, he supposed… but he'd probably end up with a dress, and wasn't particularly enthralled by the idea.

Giving a great sigh, he leant down and retrieved the engine part from the ground. How was he supposed to piece it back together when he was making such a mess of just taking it apart?

"So, you going to tell me why you're scowling at that pipe?"

He looked over his shoulder. "Liesl…"

"I mean, it's not the prettiest thing in the world, but that's not it's fault." She went on lightly, making his eye twitch.

"And you did just drop it on the floor, it's probably not in the best mood either-"

"Will you stop that?" He spun around and glared at her. "This isn't funny! You have no idea how difficult this is! Maybe not in theory, but it is for me! So just- be quiet!"

He got the silence he had asked for, but in return received a strange frown from her.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled out, not quite feeling sorry at all. His mind was a little too fried for that right now.

"Seriously, what's up? You keep mumbling about your Papa-" She frowned, "Yesterday, when you were choosing parts, and now?"

Newton studied her wearily. "I had a fight with him before I left. He… said some things that, well, hurt! So I ran off… and got myself intro trouble, again. The exact problem we were arguing about before I left." He sighed.

"Said some things…? Huh…"

"Yes… To be honest, chum, when I released the titans, that wasn't the first or the last time I've caused trouble for others and my family. Really, it seems like that's all I ever do. No matter what I do, it never works out. For me… for anyone." He sat down on the ground, elbows on his knees, chin on his hands. "I just feel like I shouldn't make decisions for myself anymore! Hah… heh…"

He came back to himself, and shook his head to clear it. "I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm telling you all this."

"No, it's okay. My dad tells me the same stuff. That I can't be alone, I can't make it on my own, yadda yadda." Liesl nudged him, "I kind of believed him, but then I realised that he can say whatever he wants, but it doesn't change who I am."

"That's… that's deep, Liesl." Newton chuckled.

"It's true though!"

He recalled her earlier criticism of her town, and frowned to himself. "If you know it's true… and you want to leave… then why don't you, then?"

At this, Liesl stopped short in her tracks. "I… I don't know." She admitted. "I guess I just feel like I have to do what he says…?"

Newton smiled. "So, you know that what he says doesn't have to define you, but… you still, well, live by his rules?"

Liesl stared at the ground for so long, Newton worried over whether he had offended her. But then, to his surprise, she laughed loudly.

"Yep! I guess… I guess I do. The thing is, it's one thing to know those wise things, but actually… doing them and believing them is a different thing."

She looked at him then, and a sudden wave of what looked like… anger?! Washed over her face.

"But that doesn't mean you can't stop criticising yourself over every little thing! It's bad enough they do it, why do it to yourself?" Before he could reply, Liesl continued, "If they want to tell you that you're wrong, then fine, but… Well, I've decided to not do the same thing to myself. And I've decided- you're not going to do that either! So stop being an arse!"

Huh.

Newton watched and saw her gasping for breath. Not surprising. She had just given that speech without stopping for a single pause. No matter how wise the words were…the pure childish anger he had just witnessed was… well, it was… kind of… funny.

He started to giggle.

"What now?" Liesl's brows knitted together in a frown.

Newton sighed, still slightly giddy. "So I suppose… You've taken over from my Papa now in telling me what to do?"

"N-no! I didn't meant to- argh! It's just…"

Newton giggled, and winked at her. "Oh, I'm just kidding you, Liesl. I understand what you mean. I think. And… I think you're right."

"So… you got my point?" She placed her hands on her hips.

"That you were trying to tell me to not be my own enemy, because I have plenty of them in other people already. Carrying their criticisms along with me won't necessarily make me a better person if I only use them against myself."

Liesl blinked very slowly. "What? What kind of fancy pants language are you speaking?" She snorted, "All I was telling you to do was to stop letting other people's opinions get you down."

"Exactly." He tucked his hands in his coat pockets and beamed at her. "I just modified the phrasing slightly, you know- got rid of the rude angry bits."

"Rude, angry bits?" Liesl blushed. "H-hey! Ugh, what do I have to do to get you to loosen up and try it a little yourself?"

He scoffed, then nudged her with his shoulder. "Another heart felt speech of yours might do the trick."

Shoving him to the side, she faced as if to walk back into the house. "You wish." Then, almost shyly, she looked over her shoulder. "I'll… get more snacks. You're going to need more fuel to finish this job."

"Yes, I know." Newton replied, looking up at his ship and smiling. "Thank you, Liesl."

Damn stupid posh country bumpkin making her feel things… Liesl grumbled to herself as she closed the door to the backyard and stepped inside the house. She couldn't remember having spoken to anyone without either a- profuse swearing or, b- with stuttering.

Her shoes made a soft clicking noise against the terracotta tiles as she made her way to the cupboard where she hid all her snacks away. Being as he was, her Father wasn't really into the idea of her stuffing her face with 'junk' every so often whilst binge watching anime. A secret stash was the only way to hide her beloved treats.

"Bourbons or Custard creams…? Bourbons… Custard creams…" She weighed each packet up in her hands. "Bourbons… … … ?"

An out of place creak from upstairs caught her attention, and she had all of her snacks packed back in the false bottom of a drawer in an instant. Her eyes narrowed.

Expertly creeping across the floor (making loud tapping noises with her shoes) and sidling up the stairs silently (each step creaking as she stepped on it) and heading into the direction of the noise, she began to hear a faint mumbled voice. It kind of sounded like her Father; odd, he wasn't usually home during the day. She had assumed he had left early in the morning as he always did, before she had woken up.

"… need the money by next month. I've waited long as it is- you know how difficult things are right now."

Difficult? Since when were they poor? They were living in a mini mansion, for goodness sakes. Well, maybe one in Heatmore, but that kept mortgage low- so wouldn't that be even less reason for them to be struggling? She began to pick at the ribbon around her waist. It was a pity she couldn't hear whos voice was on the other side of the phone… it would certainly be interesting to know what kind of person her father trusted with his finances.

"If we're to relocate by the end date, I'm going to need some compensation! I don't care if the project hasn't been completed- sell what you've found already!"

Relocate?

She heard the phone being slammed down, followed by angry mutters. He was definitely in a foul mood; she'd clear out before he found her eavesdropping.

Even so, she couldn't get the one-sided conversation she'd heard out of her head. She must have been wearing quite a confused frown on her face when she re-joined Newton in the backyard, because he asked her how she was. Liesl wasn't sure whether to tell him or not. He was cute, and seemed nice and naïve enough, but… Maybe now wasn't the right time. Instead, she tried to forget about it, and enjoyed some nice bourbons with the strange traveller now staying at her house. And maybe pinching one or two of his share when he wasn't looking. And then denying it.


	4. Oh dear

A few weeks later, Newton had finished repairing the engine of his ship; or, 'the main bit', as Liesl liked to call it.Honestly, science-y things were complicated enough as it was- why not just call everything by just how it looked? Like… square shaped donut. And… stick that turns things. There, much more sense. But when she called them by these incredibly sensible names, Newton would either laugh, or squint in confusion. What a nerd.

Whilst he was celebrating in front of his work, Liesl took the opportunity to mindlessly stare into the vast sky above the sandy plains. It was growing a nice, dirty orange shade, with a line of red just above the horizon; where the sun was currently setting. It was soon time to start making dinner, and then to end another day. She supposed that, with Newton's engine finished, he was almost finished making repairs to his ship. Perhaps he would need to patch up the outside a little more for it to be sky worthy, but… She sighed, and sat down in the dust. How long before he left her? This was the first time she had ever had a friend. It was… nice. She had gotten used to going about her day by herself, occasionally causing trouble, hearing her father's coarse opinions of her, and then going back to sleep. It was like living in limbo; nothing happening here, nor there. Living in a blank slate of a world, the same day repeating over and over… Then, bam, suddenly Newton arrives and everything's new, interesting. She actually has a reason to wake up in the morning besides eating and pooping.

If this was real, if he really had to go, she found herself wishing he had never come in the first place. It hurts a lot more to have something and then lose it; than to never have it in the first place.

Giving a great sigh, she flopped back onto the ground, crossing her arms behind her head, and watching as the last few clouds of the day ran away. She closed her eyes. Liesl could always stop him from going, she supposed. Wreck his machine again, say it was an accident … But she could never.Not really. She had seen the look on his face when he had finished this current milestone- she could never take that away from the smiling little dork.

"Uhh… Liesl? Are you alright?" The little dork himself took a seat next to her on the dry ground.

She glanced over at him. He had oil spills all over his trousers and shirt… and hands… and a little bit was smeared over his face. She scoffed, a smile on her face. "How long do you think until you finish up your repairs, then?" She gave him a question in return.

"Oh… soon." He answered vaguely. "I… I need to get some more parts though, uh, if you would be so kind as to-"

"Yeah sure. You don't have to talk to me like we're newly met strangers, you know."

He was looking at her again. She grumbled and turned onto her side.

"Well 'technically', we are. Though I would count you as a friend rather than a stranger. What is it? You've suddenly shut down."

"I have a lot to think about." Liesl replied shortly. "I heard my father going on about money and relocating when he was on the phone in his office. Weird huh?" It was part of the truth, at least.

"How strange…" Newton hummed. His eyes suddenly lit up.

"Oh- yes, I've been meaning to ask you for a while. When we went down to town that one time, I saw an odd looking man with a fancy hat in the casino, just staring at us. I can't say why, but he gave me this- well-" Newton chuckled nervously, "Odd vibe."

Her shoulders began to tense.

"Do you know… who he is, Liesl?"

"We're not going that route through town again." She said quietly, dread cooling her blood.

Was it him? It had to be. Who else wore a 'fancy hat' around these places and was in the habit of just staring at people?

"What? Then- but who was it?"

"Just a murderer." Liesl ground her teeth. "He's dangerous, Newton. If he stares at you again, just… look away."

"Murder?" He squeaked.

"Not many of our buds round here murder, but he does. It's 'cause he's one of those big bosses with a lot of money that he can cover up his tracks with. If he wants something from you, he tends to forcibly take it."

That was all she knew. She hated that was all she knew! Though in all truth, she didn't really want to know anymore. The man terrified her. He terrified everyone. Like a wild animal, he was someone you didn't want to look in the eye, because it meant his next business was you.

Newton lay down beside her, and she was so lost in her own dark thoughts, she almost flinched at his sudden appearance.

"At least you do get a nice view of the sunset from way out here." He commented, copying her position on the floor.

She bristled. If he kept this up… lying next to her, talking so casually… she felt like she would tell him everything that was on her mind. And she really didn't want to. She just… wasn't sure how to deal with people apart from yelling and punching. So how could he be so naïve and trusting and gentle?-

She felt something touch the palm of her hand.

"Here." Newton's face appeared above her.

Looking down, she saw a half-melted bourbon biscuit in her hand.

"You look like you need it." He smiled. A big smile; one that reached his entire face. Her heart ached, and she had to smile back.

"Thanks. Guess it has been a full half hour since my last one."

He chuckled and they fell into a comfortable silence.

Slowly, before the light of the sun completely disappeared from view, she lay her head on his shoulder.

The next day, Newton woke up. Well, that's generally what happens in the mornings. But he woke up, and went downstairs and found it empty. Maybe Liesl wasn't up yet. He sleepily fumbled his way back upstairs and found her door, and tapped on it. Once. Twice. Three times… He cautiously pushed it open and found the room… Empty. This was… new.

He stood in the corridor and looked about himself for a moment, a little lost. "H-hello?" He tentatively called out, thinking to at least wake her father to ask where she was. "Liesl?"

He walked out of the back door and into the sunshine, which was already beating down hot upon the earth. "Liesl?" He called a little louder, confusion and a little panic beginning to start up in his brain. "Liesl?!"

Only the wind called in return, rustling the few skeletal plants that were still standing in the garden. Out of a meek hope, he knocked on his airship's door. "Liesl? Are you in here?" The only reply he received was the echoing of the knocking inside the ship.

Newton whimpered. He felt like a kid who had lost his mother at the super market.

"Liesl!!"

He trudged out of Liesl's home property, and up, up, up… until he reached the crest of the large hill that overlooked the grotty old town. It looked particularly murky today, and he felt his stomach become queasy at the sight of it. "Oh… Oh no…"

Standing in silence, he tortured himself with the horrific things that could be happening to her as he stood idling. She had biceps though! She would be fine. Right? So that meant… he didn't have to venture into the violent, dangerous, murderous town to find her. He whined to himself, his foot tapping against the ground with more urgency, then stopped. He remembered how vulnerable she had looked the other evening, like something was eating her alive… And then when she leant on his shoulder and, hoping to cheer her up, he gave her a small little-

Kiss.

He had kissed her!

Well, that settled it, a kiss was practically a marriageproposal! He had to go and find her! It was his sworn duty! Men protected their women and Newton was no exception!He stuck a fist up into the air and charged down the hill, roaring out his battle cry. If these people wanted to fight, he was going to show them just how tough the son of the famous Captain Pud was!

Her father. Jax Joker. Her father, she had seen him with JAX the BloODY Joker—Her head was pulsing with so many emotions that she got a biting headache, and had to sit down on one of the small hills overlooking the city. The murderous, creepy ass hole who had been staring at Newton was now messing with her father? Dizziness clung to her like a wet towel and wouldn't let go, forcing her to lye down a moment and think it all through.

If her father was with Joker, then the question was- why? He must want something from their family of two; as to what? Liesl was clueless, but she knew this was bad. Bad, bad, bad. She had to go and rescue him- right now! Heaven knows what Joker would do to him! Liesl could only hoped that he needed him for something- that way he wouldn't kill him immediately at least… it would give her some time…

She had to go and tell Newton; he'd help her, with that nerd brain of his and a fist or two from her, they could find a way to beat whatever shady business Joker was conducting this time.

She hoped that he would forgive her for sneaking off by herself in the early morning, but as soon as she was woken by the familiar, eerie voice of Joker and especially when she had seen him leading her father away- well, she couldn't waste a second. At least now she knew where they had gone. Back into the casino… Somewhere. They could figure that out later. Feeling a little steadier on her feet, she got up and started back to her house, as fast as her legs would let her walk up the hill.

Reaching the house, she flung open the doors and charged in, yelling for Newton. Beauty sleep be damned, this was an emergency!

Liesl crashed through his bedroom door. "NEWTON-"

Oh, there was no one here. Okay. Wait. Had Joker taken himtoo? No, no. Liesl would have seen him. Plus, the little dork would probably have shrieked so loud that people from the next continent over would have heard him. She plonked herself down on his empty bed and thought.

Supposing he had woken up whilst she was out, and then couldn't find her. What would she do if she was a gullible, kind, but stupid country bumpkin who had no street smarts to speak of? Oh. Oh no.

Oh heck all mighty, he had gone looking for her.

Liesl groaned and dragged her hands down her face. This was going to be such a long day. She gathered up her dress and tucked it into her knee-high white socks, then made her way to her bedroom and opened the cute little jewellery box upon her dressing table. She ran her finger above an array of weapons laid out in the box, debating which would be most suitable for this quickie retrieval-of-Newton mission… probably those brass knuckles- they were discreet enough not to be noticed until she wanted them to be. Yup. Brass knuckles it was. Cheerfully, she slipped them over her fingers and flexed her arm. Perfect! Even with her relatively low strength, these should give her a fighting chance at bailing Newton out of whatever trouble he was probably currently in. Though, with any luck, he was just wandering so blindly around the streets that whatever thugs were out there today wouldn't peg him for any value, despite his fancy clothes. Oh, screw that, he was in so much trouble. She clicked the box shut and scooted down the stairs, before making her way full throttle back into town.

"I keep telling you- I really don't have anything on me," He blubbered, as they yanked his arms behind his back and tied them together so hard, he felt the ropes screwing into his wrists.

"Whatever. Hey, Hitch, how much his clothes worth, you think?"

"Depends on who we can sell them to. They're made out of pretty fancy material, I'd say. Especially that coat."

Newton whimpered. "Please, not the coat! It was a present from my Papa-"

"Stop your whimpering! Gees, just shut up. Can't believe we can't even gag this guy- weird lightbulb freak. The guys really need to get a move on before someone finds us."

"Wait- he said he has a father."

Newton flinched as a rough looking girl with a scar on her cheek dropped down in front of him. "So, who is it? Someone we should know about, huh? Someone rich?"

"S-some one who'll come find me and- and- arrest you!" He gasped as he glimpsed a flash of silver.

The girl- Hitch- had pressed a knife to his chest. "Look, brat, just tell us who your daddy is and we won't need to hurt you. At least, if he pays us what you're worth."

This was just like six months ago… he had pulled his Papa away from his travels with the word he had released the titans and had fallen prey to their puppeteering skills. All because… Newton was his son, and it was the Captain's job to save his adult son from destroying the entire world. And now, history would repeat and the Captain would be dragged into his silly adventures all over again.

He would have cried if he was able to- as it was, all he could do was continue whimpering pathetically. There was no way he could let that happen again. Newton would do anything he could to stop his Papa from having to step in and mop him and his mess up.

Meeting the thug's eyes, he shook his head firmly.

"Shit!" Her partner in crime snapped, and seized him by the throat. "If you don't wanna die, you better start talking!"

Die, huh? Was this how he went out? His head was swimming as his oxygen supply was cut off by the brutish fist around his neck. Maybe that wouldn't be so bad, given all the trouble he caused wherever he went; it would certainly knock years off his Papa- not having to worry about him all the time. That being said… Newton wasn't so sure he wanted to die in a place like this- not that he much choice. They could do what they felt with him. He was weak. Not like he could fight back. But he wouldn't… wouldn't give away his father's name.

"What about the girl then!" He roared, "You know, little Liesl, the daughter of that bastard Lance. The one you've been living with for two weeks. They got heaps of dough, if you don't want to give away your daddy you can always tell us about her, huh?"

No… Not Liesl either. Newton's breath was becoming more and more laboured, and the corners of his vision were growing dark.

The grip on his throat eased slightly, allowing him to talk if he decided to. "Come on, we aint got all day!"

No… It was the same situation as his Papa. Someone stronger than he was, was being dragged down by his idiocy. Wherever she was now, if she was in some trouble, or just out on her own business, Newton should have known she would be fine. Because unlike him, she was strong.

An angry cry split through the interrogation, but before his attackers had time to turn around a fist lined with metal cracked against the side of the man holding him against the wall. Newton gasped as he was immediately released and sweet, sweet oxygen rushed into his lungs- but was quickly winded again when he was seized by his other attacker, who was now the only one left standing as the man lay unconscious on the floor, blood over his forehead.

Through his blurry vision, he saw Liesl's angry face facing the woman who had a crushing grip around his ribs, and the next time he blinked, she had let go off him and was staggering backwards before joining her male counterpart on the floor with a meaty thud.

Liesl grabbed his wrist and bolted.

"I'm sorry." He gasped, voice hoarse, before his vision completely faded.


	5. Things are getting serious

His senses next returned to him when he was lying in bed. It felt like no time had passed from then, and he lurched upwards, expecting some kind of attack. All he was met with however, was Liesl snoozing in a chair by his bed side. His eyes caught sight of a few bruises blooming on her knuckles, and his heart sank.

He had gotten in trouble, trying to save her from trouble. He was on such a consistent losing streak, it was almost impressive.

Weakly, he crawled across the mattress and took hold of her hands, turning them over in his own and gently stroking the purpling skin with his thumbs. "I'm sorry." He said aloud, again.

"Why?"

He jumped as a sleepy voice quietly replied. Liesl was stretching in her chair, and took one of her hands back from him to gently rub at her one visible eye.

"I dragged you into trouble. I should have known you were fine on your own… wherever you were. For what it's worth…" He sighed shakily, feeling a little smitten despite himself, "You were as you, uh, call it, 'bad ass'."

"It's fine. It was my decision to come and find you." She said simply, and looked at him with more clarity. "Heh, but thanks."

"But… I did it again. You're so much stronger than I am Liesl and- just like my Papa I- why am I so weak…?"

"Shut up." She snapped, butting their heads together gently enough to not hurt but firmly enough to grab his attention.

"You're not weak, Newton. I have physical strength and… well, whatever being used to dealing with shady people is, but you've got…" She smiled, looking a lot more friendly now. "You've got loyalty, and kindness. It's cool, it's great, and we've been over this- stop being your own enemy when you've already got people doing it for you."

He wasn't really convinced by her words, but something more pressing came to mind. "Why were you even out so early in the first place?"

"My- My father." A shadow came over Liesl's eye. A scowl slowly deepened on her face. "Joker has him, and I don't know why, but I doubt it's anything good. I was following them so I could see where they went."

Either he was still incredibly out of it, or he had never heard that name before. "Joker…?"

"The guy you saw at the casino." She replied shortly, making his heart stammer a few beats.

"The murderer?"

"That's the one." Liesl uncrossed her legs and stood up from her seat on the chair. "Now you're up… I need to go and find him."

"Alright… Where are we going exactly?"

Her head snapped back to him in shock, "You are not coming with me."

Well, that pricked his ego a little. Newton gave a little huff, and sat a little further up in bed, testing his joints. Everything felt fine- just a little sore. "You can't confront Joker on your own."

"And I suppose you're going to be my back-up, with your refined fighting skills?"

Ouch. He was about to retort, but she was glaring at him with such seriousness, that he only let out a loose breath of air.

"I'm not a fighter like you are, Liesl, but… I can't just watch and let my friend walk into danger… alone, anyway." He smiled weakly. "If we're opting for stupid, we're doing it together."

To his surprise, his words made her stop, and that scary scowl falter. A small laugh bubbled up from her throat, as a smile replaced the grimace, she had been fixing him with.

"You're a good friend. I'm not convinced, but… I know you'd follow me anyway. Alright. Together, or not at all." She raised her fist in front of him, and Newton gasped excitedly.

Was this… what they called… a bro fist? Okay! Don't screw this up!

Enthusiastically, he lurched his arm forward and swiftly punched her in the breast.

"They went into the casino." Liesl had a tight hold of his hand- as if she thought he was a toddler that might bolt at any moment- as they stood on the fringes of town, overlooking the wreck that was her home. "I don't know where he conducts his dirty business in there, but I guess we'll have to find out."

Newton nodded, feeling an all too familiar fear beginning to settle into his gut. They were walking straight into trouble. Was it stupid? Or brave? He could never tell the difference- at least, that's what his Papa kept on telling him. It was one thing to do something stupid to be brave, but to do something stupid because you were stupid was just… err… well, stupid. But- no, he couldn't focus on that now. If he was doing this- if they were doing this, they needed to have faith that what they were doing was the best decision they could make given the situation.

And, being stupid was a lot easier with someone else by your side- Newton felt a small wave of gratitude to Liesl forholding his hand so tightly.

"Sorry about your boob, Liesl."

"Don't mention it."

"No, really, I'm-"

"No, seriously. Don't mention it. That was just embarrassing. A bro fist is the first thing I'm teaching you how to do if we make it out alive."

The pair wandered up to the casino doors, and loitered outside for a moment, entering with the next wave of customers, and keeping close to the crowds once inside.

"It looks… well, normal." Newton whispered to her, and she lead him to the shadows of the room, near the taller gambling machines.

"I know." She hissed, looking about the space. "Keep a look out, will you? I'm trying to see if there's any doors that lead further in anywhere around here."

"R-right." He could do that. Mission impossible, here we go.

No one was really looking at them, thankfully. They all looked a little dead behind the eyes, going from one machine to the next, cursing when they inevitably lost. Some took it a step further and attacked the games, hoping to get the money they had gambled on; no such luck.

"Waugh!" Newton yelped as something jabbed him in the side. "Wh- Liesl?"

She chortled quietly. "Just making sure you were doing your job properly."

"At a time like this?" He scowled, then stiffened up as he saw a macho, scaley looking beast of a guard heading in their direction. "Liesl!"

"Ah, calm down, it's fine." She continued looking in the opposite direction, "I couldn't help myself. It was just a little fun to break the tension and blah."

The macho lizard beast was now only a few feet in front of Newton, and was fixing them with a bulbous yellow eye as it seemed to listen in to what Liesl was happily yammering about. "The sooner we infiltrate this place, kick the ass of whats-his-face Joker and rescue my father, the- oh." She had turned around and had noticed the guard flexing some unnecessarily big looking shoulder pads.

"Uh- hey." She leant back against the wall, and started pretending to… chew gum?"

Newton felt a little bit of doom hover over his shoulders.

"What's up, man? You good?" She flicked her hair in display.

Liesl, this isn't helping.

"Infiltrate our hide, huh?" A voice so raspy came out of the guard's mouth, that Newton could no more certainly say it was a voice, and not just a snarl that kind of sounded like words.

Liesl's face fell. "Ah shit."

"FuckinG- RUN-" She seized Newton's wrist and towed him across the ground.

"Intruders!" Their discoverer belted out, and Newton saw several other guards abandon their posts at the door of the casino to join the first in chasing after them.

Liesl seemed to pick a random door and barged through it, thinking fast and choosing the first room on the left to dart into and stand next to the open door.

"What are we doing stopping here?!" Newton cried out in a panic, but Liesl slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Trust me. Stand completely still."

The door to the corridor slammed open, and the heavy footsteps of the guards cascading into the hallway rung throughout the air. Newton would have screamed as one of them entered the room they were in, if Liesl's hand hadn't been locked over his mouth.

To his terror, the guard swept his gaze over the room, under the desk, to the side of the filing cabinet, then turned tail and joined his comrades in searching the other rooms.

"H- how…?" Newton's chest was hammering so hard against his chest, he thought it might break his ribs.

"Hiding in plain sight. They wouldn't expect us to hide in the first room, with the door wide open, and next to the door at that. Lucky these guys are kind of in a rush- and stupid, that trick doesn't work on everyone. In short… it was kind of a gamble." She let out a deep breath followed by a silent laugh. "Man, we could have been toast!""This isn't funny…" Newton was close to crying, clinging onto her arm so hard his knuckles were growing the same whiteish tint as her skin.

"I know." Liesl shivered. "Sorry, that… that was my fault. It's alright now, I'll pay more attention to what you say next time.

Then she added, "Here, I grabbed these before we left."

She pressed a small knife in his hands.

Newton froze to the spot, blood running cold. "A-a kn-knife? What- what's that for?"

"Self-defence." She said lowly, slipping on the same brass knuckles she had used to get him out of the scrap he had been in earlier. "These guys aren't pacifists. They won't think twice about killing you if they think they have to." She caught the look on his face, and winced sympathetically.

"I'm sorry. This is just how it is… at least, here, anyway. It sounds… nicer, where you live." She turned away, and surveyed the corridor.

Newton studied the knife he had been given. That much was true at least. He had been brought up in a lovely little mountain top where violence was so far removed from anything he had ever experienced before… well, before he had been possessed by the titans, of course. He was beginning to realise how sheltered he was, compared to Liesl before him. How… useless he was, compared to her. The day before she had been eating biscuits with him and laughing at his terrible attempts at humour, sweet as can be in the fading day light… but here? She was suddenly different. Capable. It frightened him a little, but he couldn't fault her for where she had been raised. If he had been born here… well, he supposed he would be much the same. Pocketing the knife, he joined her in peering out of their hiding place, and watched with her as the pack of guards headed deeper into the building, disappearing through another door into a second corridor.

"I'm sorry, for being like this. I… don't mean to slow you down-" He whispered, seeing them go out of earshot.

Liesl pulled him back in the room by his coat collar and gently leant her forehead against his. "Not this again. Don'tapologise, for being a kind person."

"The reason… why you can't see how dangerous these people can be? The reason you couldn't see how dangerous the titans were? It's because you're a good person. You can't imagine anyone wanting to hurt someone else… because you couldn't do that yourself. Newton, I… I'm not a good person. But if I can, I'll try and help you to stay how you are."

He stared at her, gobsmacked, as she pulled away. That was the first time he had heard that his endless stupidity was… what, supposedly a good thing? Before he could think of what to say, Liesl lead him by his sleeve stealthily down the corridor and after the guards.

"They'll go straight to where the good stuff is- because that's what they don't want us to see the most."

So that's where they were going… Newton gulped. Deeper into trouble. I'm sorry, Papa. He silently steeled himself. I guess... I'm going to be trouble until the end.

Okay. They had to time this perfectly. If they followed after them too fast, or too slowly, they would be discovered. Just the right amount of distance so they could investigate this shady place and get her father back before they… Her heart clenched. He sure was an asshole a solid 80% of the timeBut… he was the only family she knew of that she had left.

I will get you out of here. She swore to herself, feeling the ridges of her weapon between her fingers. I swear.

That's right. He wasn't all bad. He had… he had raised her, after all. Food, shelter, clothes, education, he had given her all that. It wasn't his fault that she… she wasn't good enough, even after all that. Or, good enough for him. She was fine, she was fine, I am fine, I am fine-

Leading Newton along, more gently this time, she peered through the doors on either side of the corridor as they walked towards the end of it. The rooms were all empty; some of them seemed to have CTV screens in them, others just stored full of old junk- mining stuff? At least, that's what she was reminded of, with all the pick axe's and helmet's and stuff. At any rate, there didn't seem to be much for them to gain by staying around here, so she opted to take a chance and go deeper.

Pushing the door open slowly, she observed that the new corridor stretched out in front of them was the same lay out as the first, but… this one was sloping downwards, as if from here on out their 'base' was underground. Weird… but okay. It was beginning to open up too; this space wasn't as cramped as what they had been in before. It seemed the function of the rooms they had just walked past was to just act as a façade, to disinterest anyone who happened to stumble through the wrong door. No money, no goods, just boring old maintenance and security. Which got her to thinking… what could possibly be back here that they wanted to deter people from?

Liesl heard footsteps returning back towards them, and quickly urged Newton into the office closest to them, shutting the door partially behind them- it should do the trick to give them a few moments to poke around before moving on.

Newton was shivering, bless him.

"Are you alright to-"

"Yes." He interrupted her, before she had even finished. The level of resolution she saw in her eyes warmed her. "We're going to get your father out of this. I don't know what I would do if something happened to my Papa, so… so I'm with you!"

Liesl smiled. "Thank you, Newton." It was comforting to know she wasn't alone. He was the first friend she had really had- at least- since her mother had lived with them and they were in a better town. In a better place- which she was not going to think about right now- because she had things to do.

"Liesl? Is… that important?"

She turned to look at where Newton was pointing to, and found a rather large screen and- yes! It was logged in! It seemed that whoever had been here and left in a hurry. Alright… if they did this quick…

She almost pounced to the keyboard and opened up the system files. Maybe they could get some insight into what they planned to do with her father- what they had on him, that kind of thing. Or maybe, there might even be a map of these weird complex! That would certainly help.

Newton peered over her shoulder as she quickly scrolled through the list of files.

"Where would I hide stuff that was shady…?" She thought to herself.

"Plain sight?" Newton suggested jokingly, but it sent a spark through her.

"Yes! You're a genius!" She tugged him down by his collar and smooched him on the cheek, then went back to looking through the files.

File names… Okay, which looked suspiciously normal?

Business plans?

Come on, that had to be it.

She double clicked to open it and was greeted with many images of what looked like to be architectural plans… some writing documents, even some spread sheet ones…

She fished up a couple of the images.

"Mining?" Newton puzzled from behind her. "But… they're a casino?"

"Maybe it's their hobby." Liesl remarked drily, and opened up the text documents.

Scrolling through, a lot of it seemed to be records… of… wait- was this geology? Why the hell where they… researching stones? Near the… volcano…

Her stomach dropped.

Legal documents followed, and… fake documentations of seismic activity? This was bollocks! The volcano near their village had been sitting still as a stone, not a peep out of it! And suddenly they were trying to make out it had been stirring recently? Smoke? Ashes in the sky?

Though… those tremors… but that couldn't possibly be to do with the volcano, could it? The more she read, the more she was convinced that this was the case. There was a large deposit of precious stone underneath, surrounding, left right and centre of the volcano, underground. It flanked the volcano so closely that the only way to get to it would trigger an eruption-

Liesl panicked. "Newton!- They- they're planning to destroy the entire town!"

But… how? She knew the casino must make a high turn over… but would that really be enough to fund the plans for large scale mining that these documents suggested were their aim? How could they possible have enough money for this, unless-

"It looks like we have a rat problem."

The pair jumped, and lurched around. They came face to face with…

Newton yelped, Liesl's flame swelled in anger.

"Joker." She snarled. "What the hell are you doing! You can't mine a volcano! It'll-"

"Errupt, exactly." The maniacal little card giggled. He sounded a little insane- no doubt about it, this guy had gone off the deep end. "There's a goldmine of jewels and… gold! Under this beautiful mountain. You should be celebrating, in fact, Liesl! Your family has it's shares, I'm not so greedy I would deny my loyal patrons'."

"Patrons?" She scoffed, feeling as angry as she was confused. "Don't get the wrong idea and think that my family has anything but disgust with you!"

"Really? But your dear old Dad has been quite my supporter. In fact, he's pooled large sums into this little investment of mine-"

"You bloody liar!" She raged on, heedless of Newton shrinking away from the crazed casino owner and his mini army of body guards. Some of which, were the same ones who had just been chasing them, she noted. "What have you done with my father! I swear, if he's harmed I'll-"

"Oh, calm down, it's quite alright. As I said, I'd never harm one of my largest contributing patron's. He's just needed for business. Urgent business." He smiled icily. "You see… we've waited long enough. Our project is ready to get underway.

"What, as in, to steal and threaten more money out of him? Nice try. Don't think we'll actually let you do this crazy mission."

The little card sighed, and shook his head- which basically consisted of his entire body- side to side in false dismay. "Oh, oh dear. I had hoped you would have been more co-operative, but maybe we need some help from Daddy dearest to convince you. Lance, would you…?"

Her eyes widened as a familiar silhouette stepped into the room.

His face was set in a grim, but determined expression.

"Liesl. It's true. I've kept it from you as much as I can child, but we're in debt with the amount of money we've borrowed to invest in this plan. But… now is finally the time to reclaim our wealth! And, gain more besides. We'll restore the family name that was stolen from us upon I and your mother's marriage."

"He's… just making you say that. You'd never work with Joker." Liesl's knees grew weak, and she sank to the floor. "He… father, you… you know what he did. So why would you…?"

"No. This decision was entirely my own. But, it was also for the both of us. Liesl, you'll have your rightful title back! Can you not understand why I did this for us? For you?"

"Some family name! Why would I want a stupid title if it's already been ruined!" She screamed.

Lance snarled and stormed over to her, seizing her by the dress collar and pulling her up to his height. Liesl choked, and tore her nails against his hands.

"You stupid girl! What's so hard to understand! You are a Lady! Don't you want to reclaim your rightful share-"

Liesl gasped through swimming vision, as Newton lunged forwards and threw a punch right at her father's face.

He dropped her, and she fell spluttering to the floor as he recoiled from the force of the punch.

"You!- Stay out of this!" Lance looked ready to lunge at Newton next, but Joker tapped the cane he was holding against the floor, and a guard came forwards and seized Newton for him.

"Liesl!" He yelped out, reaching towards her. "Don't touch her!"

He wrenched his head around in the strong grip of his captor to look at Lance. "You're not her father… you're a- a- ackkk…" Liesl watched the grip around his neck tighten, and began to panic her way out of her shock.

"Stop! Stop-stop let him go-"

Joker signalled to the guard to loosen his grip, but he still had Newton restrained in his arms.

"Take him somewhere where he won't interfere."

"And Lance?" Joker sent him a withering look. "Knock some sense into your idiot offspring. Please."


	6. So about that volcano...

They took Newton away. She… didn't know where. Obviously. Because she was here, and the first friend she had had in years was somewhere else. Instead, she was stuck in this dark room with the recently discovered truths still open on the large screen behind her, glowing up the room as her father loomed over her, little more than a silhouette.

"Liesl." He sounded calmer now, without Joker standing behind him. Still though, there was that familiar edge to his voice that threatened whatever he had to say was going to be listened to.

Obediently, she lifted her head, which was still numb and foggy from his confession.

"I don't know whether or not Joker had something to do withyour mother's-" He took a sharp intake of breath. "But that doesn't matter now-"

"Doesn't matter?" This remark cut through her haze, and she seized his collar and pressed him against the wall. "So it really doesn't matter to you what happened to mother? Well, it does matter to me!" Liesl dropped him distastefully onto the floor.

He returned her gaze, angrily. "You have no idea the effort I've put into this- our future. Do you want to live in this place forever, child?"

"No." She replied flatly, feeling her rage give her a new-found strength. "I want to leave."

"Exactly- of course you do- so just stop interfering and let me-"

"But not with you." She finished.

"Not with- Liesl! How many times must I re-iterate- you can't-"

"-Make it on my own!" She snapped, "I know. I've heard what you think a million times over. But now it's time for me to decide what I can and can't do. You can see this traitorous plan through to the end, but some of us can't sleep easy knowing that their future was made off of other's murders!"

He watched her in disbelief, and for the first time, she saw an emotion that looked like helplessness wash over his face.

Just when it looked as if he was getting ready to bark another order at her, she turned away. "I'm going to find Newton. After that… I don't know. But I'm not going with you anymore."

Turning her back, she strode through the halls with a strange sense of being unstoppable. She knew it was dangerous to over estimate your own skills, but she was filled with a rising anger and urgency that compelled her to keep moving. Everything was going to be alright. It had to be. Probably.Picking up the pace, she began to run through the unfamiliar twists and turns- aimlessly, yes, but she wanted to move quickly. Where would they have even have taken Newton? She doubted they would want to let him live after what he had witnessed, so… where… Something clicked in her mind and she skidded to a halt, chest heaving. Oh shit! The volcano! They were going to dump him there, huh? Seemed a tad dramatic, but she supposed it would get rid of the problem of having a body to dispose of. She shook her head, wincing. How messed up; she was thinking of how they would kill him? Really? Ah well, the important thing was she was headed in the wrong direction… This was only their base. The real work… that would be going on above ground. In plain sight… Damn it. They had pulled her own trick on her! Liesl had next to no energy to continue running, but she fuelled herself off pure necessity. She would either get there, or die from a heart attack trying. All the training in self defence and she hadn't thought to build up stamina to run… Moron…

Eventually, she burst out from the door she had entered the maze of corridor's from- she was about to start back up into a sprint before she realised that that might attract some of the guards that might still be lingering around and instead continued on her merry way doing a little speed walk that you do when you need the bathroom. It worked alright until she got to the door and- of course Joker had left guards on watch for her. Immediately, two of the same bulky lizard like creatures were boxing her in between them. Liesl thought quickly- two big burly guys, one small her, not gonna work. It wasn't like she could afford to waste time either. The only way to get past them was to out smart them and then out run them. Slim chances, but whatever, it wasn't like she had another option. If she could do it, she sure didn't feel like she could, but now was the time for action! She exhaled a large plume of smoke, enough to blind them for a second whilst she slipped past them and out the door. Okay, now she really did have to run, attracting other people's attention be damned! They were at her heels the moment she stepped away from the building, and holding onto the hope that she might arrive to save Newton in time was the only thing keeping her going.

From her house, the volcano had never seemed too far away from the town. Sure, she knew it couldn't be right on it'sdoorstep, but it couldn't be more than like 10 minutes walkaway, right? Wrong! She had been running for 15 minutes and still the damn thing was out of reach and worse still- she was getting tired. It was no use. She had to slow down. The minute she did, she was seized in bulky arms, tied up, and thrown into the back of some kind of kart with so much force that, coupled with her exhaustion, it caused her to black out.

Barely conscious, she felt the vehicle start up and begin trundling along… somewhere. Her heart was beating hard, and the flame upon her head had started to die and turn to smoke. She tried to struggle against the ropes, but to no avail.

Shit… Her cheek was pressed too firmly to be comfortable against the floor of the boot, but she didn't even have the strength to sit up. She closed her eyes, and immediately felt a pang of regret washing through her. It was stupid of her to assume she could have out run these guys, and somehow 'saved the day'. She wasn't a hero. It was like her Father had said, she couldn't make it on her own out here… she was just a weak little- Her eyes flashed open as she caught a glimpse of something shiny lying next to her. Was that a file?

She was a weak little runt… with a file.

Scooting as subtly as she could to the side, she just about managed to pick up the file with the tiny t-rex hands that the ropes had left her with, and began sawing at the rope with it. It was taking so long to even make a dent, but she couldn't give up, had to keep going-

The truck started to slow and she frantically increased her pace, hoping to be able to leap out of whatever harms way she was about to land in. Come on, come on, come on…

There was a dry crunch as the wheels completely came to a halt on the gritty ground, followed by a heavy symphony of car doors clicking open then slamming shut.

Just before she was hoisted into the air, Liesl managed to slip the file down one of her stockings. But, was still tied up.

They had driven to the volcano, she realised, as her eyes managed to re-focus on their surroundings. She was lifted over the shoulder of one of her captors, as the other one kept an eye on her from the back. She had to say, it was quite disconcerting to be forced to look a grizzly old buff guy straight in his yellow eyes as she was awkwardly carried around the side of a steep volcano. Definitely not an everyday experience, at least.

Where were they going? It seemed to Liesl that they were just circling the volcano and having a sight see. Or was there something else going on here? She thought that the area would have been teeming with dodgy characters, about to launch their plan into action, but it was deathly quiet all around. Still, they pressed onward, and with every step her nerves bristled a little more. It felt like something was about to happen, at any moment, something would strike out-

"Alright, it's here." The guard behind her overtook the one holding her and felt around the ground with his boots until the sound he was making turned from one of kicking up dust, to an odd clang of metal. He then squatted and took hold of an ordinary looking stone, which turned out to be the handle of some kind of trap door.

At least, that was all she could make out from her current position. They started to head down a flight of stairs that lead underground. These guys were a load of moles!! What was with their underground dens? They stopped for a moment to haul the trap door back across and then resumed tramping down the stairs. Very quickly, however, the ground levelled out. The ceiling grew higher, and soon Liesl found herself in an entire underground chamber and it was hot. It felt like heat was radiating from the very rocks around them. Specks of glowing rocks and jewels caught her eye… surely those were worth fortune enough? Apparently not, because as they pressed forward, Liesl saw a large drill positioned below the ceiling, the drill bit made out of what seemed to be a jewel in itself. Guess now we know what cost so much to build… she thought drily.

They stopped, and Joker emerged from the shadows. "About time you thugs showed up." He said grumpily, though in that high-pitched voice of his, it didn't really have the same mafia boss effect that she felt he was going for.

"It looks like Lance wasn't able to convince his little Liesl to join us in our quest, huh?" He looked up at her cheerfully, "Well, at least you'll be able to be reunited with your lover boy."

The mention of her friend brought back her fire. "Newton! What have you done with him?"

"Oh relax, he's right here. Even offered to pilot the drill for us." Joker stepped back and sure enough, Liesl saw that Newton had been tied to the seat and was slumped, unconscious, against the steering wheel.

"And that's where you'll join him." The little card grinned, tapping his cane on the floor.

At the noise, the guard holding her stepped forward, opened the passenger door of the machine, and tossed her inside, locking the door behind her.

All Liesl could do was headbutt the door in frustration. "What the hell? Let us out! What are you even planning to make us do? It's not like we'll help you!"

"Oh, whether you will or you won't my dear, it makes no difference; the drill's already got its co-ordinates programmed in, and once we have the deposits we need, it'll simply carry on into the heart of the volcano and turn you all into a roast turkey!"

Liesl paled, and began to struggle against her ropes more viciously, before remembering the file, and trying to sneakily take it out of her sock to continue cutting the ropes from her wrists.

"Well, evacuate your posts!" Joker beamed, "To the safe house, if you want to keep your skin."

And quick as that, they travelled through a near byvelociporter nestled within the rocky walls and left the pair alone in their jail. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before they activated the drill and sent them to their deaths.

"Newton!" She finally cut herself free from the ropes. "Wake up! We've got to get out of here!" She slapped him back and forth over his face. "Hey!"

"Huh?" He slowly opened his eyes, blearily.

There was a loud rumble from all around them, and the drill sparked to life. They were out of time.

"What?" He jumped up, fully awake as Liesl pressed her face into the window in despair. In a great lurch, the drill began to move forward on its tracks and push through the wall.

"No, no, no!" She beat her fists against the windows, but they were already surrounded by earth.

It wouldn't be long before they gained access to the jewels those villains wanted so badly, and as soon as they had all been collected in the velociporter within the drill and sent back… then there was no more reason to keep them around.

"Liesl." Newton caught her shoulder, "What's happening?"

"Death. We're going to die, if we can't stop this drill." Her chest was shivering. She couldn't remember the last time in her life when she was this frightened, which was understandable, given that they were on death's door. Looking into Newton's face however, she saw a look of focus which seemed to over ride his fear.

"We need to stop the drill?""Yes, the co-ordinates are set, they'll send us into the volcano once they're done gathering jewels." Her throat was so tight she could barely speak, but her muscles were filled with the urgency to do something. But there was nothing she could do. There was no fighting her way out of this.

Newton turned his attention to the screens and dials on the control board below him. Furrowing his brows, he launched straight into fidgeting with the commands.

ACCESS DENIED

"I thought so." He grumbled to himself, and then began what Liesl could only see as being a frenzied sort of dance with his hands.

"What are you doing?" Her mouth spoke for her, voice only a meek tremor.

"Well, I'm not very good at making things work, but I tell you Liesl, I'm an expert at making them break."

Her head was spinning. She wasn't sure if he could do anything to get them out of this. Her eyes darted to the window where rocks, dirt, and flakes of crystals were rushing past the drill, then out the front windscreen where she was certain she could see a glow of something hot behind those rocks. Again, she punched at the door, uselessly. She didn't even want it to break, the earth would cave in and swallow them if it did.

"Newton-"

"Liesl-" He muttered, distracted.

"Newton there's no point we're- we're going to-" She chewed her lip until it hurt. "We're dead, don't you get it?"

The heat was beginning to grow now, and the number of precious stones they were encountering were dropping by the second. The sides of the drill were scalding to the touch with the heat they were producing, and she could feel her skin begin to deform and melt. God it hurt, it hurt-

Please, make this quick.

"Newt… I never told you, but… ah, uh… you're- I mean I- I like you." She panted.

Then more frantically when she didn't receive an answer, "H-hey! Will you just-"

He was moving his hands, and his eyes now, faster and faster.

"This is the last time I'm going to get to even speak to you, I'm trying to confess and- and you're just-"

Then, finally, he met her eyes. The softness of them almost made the pain all over her body fade for a moment. "Liesl. We're going to be alright."

"What? What makes you… say that? I'm already… already dying..." Saying the words out loud terrified her, but it wasn't like denying the truth was going to help. She was literally melting for Imagisphere's sake.

To her bewilderment, he cupped her face in his hand, and with the cockiest, kind of sexy, but mostly infuriatingly confusing grin said, "Not today."

And with one swift turn of the wheel, the drill flipped around and began burrowing back into heavenly, cool air.

She sank to her knees, heaving, and feeling about ready to throw up as her body registered what had happened to it. As soon as the cool air hit her, her brain started to work again and she howled in pain.

Newton finally had the sense to look panicked. "Liesl? Is this- is this still killing you?"

"No!" She grunted, struggling to stay awake. "It just hurts… like a sonofabitch!"

Newton huffed out a laugh of relief and pressed his forehead to hers. "Hold on. Just a little longer, we can get you out of here."

"I can't. I'm going to- to pass out." She groaned, and he held her close to his chest.

Through his shirt, she could hear his heart beating. Then, if she turned her focus inward, she could hear her own beating. The function was so simple, so expected, and everything she took for granted and she began to tear up.

"You saved us."

"Ah… I'm used to being in the grips of certain death." He murmured as he nuzzled her face. "I guess after a while it stops paralyzing you like it used to."

Despite herself, the pain, the situation, the betrayal she had felt up to this moment, Liesl felt a warm feeling in her heart and laughed. "You… you're a badass."

And with that, the grains of black at the side of her vision closed in, and she fell into darkness.

Newton watched the woman in his arms fondly. "Oh yes, I rather like you, too." He replied, once the stress had finally evaporated from him enough for him to clock what she had said properly. What a wonderful feeling. He grinned to himself. So, this was what it felt like to save the world instead of destroy it? His eldest chum must be having quite the ego trip to have done something like that not just once, but twice. In fact, knowing them, and the fact they had the three guardians on their side now, there was no doubt in his mind that it would quickly become a third.

The drill continued to run- he estimated it would be at least 10 minutes or so before they finally got out of this hellish place. He chuckled. He had known this volcano would be trouble as soon as he saw it, after all, they didn't call him Newton 'magnet for trouble' Pud for nothing.

Carefully, he turned over Liesl in his arms and made sure she was breathing properly. Luckily, it seemed that when she slept, the flame upon her wick went out, so he wouldn't burn himself as he supported her. When they got back, when she woke up, he would have to tell her how he felt in all it's entirety instead of leaving her hanging like that.

Finally, the peak of the drill touched sunlight, and the rocks slid off the sides of the metal body as the ground spat them back out again. Now, there was the slight problem of dealing with those hooligans who had tried to destroy an entire town just to make their fortune. Newton tsked to himself. He had done an awful lot of stupid things in his life, but never had he intentionally set about trying to kill anyone. How despicable.

He spotted an abandoned kart some distance away, and hoisted Liesl into his arms with great difficulty and began to stagger towards it.

It had made sense that they had not evacuated the town themselves to avoid killing anyone to get to their precious jewels, after what they had told him. Turns out this volcano was quite the sacred spot, and didn't belong to them to boot. Some religious citadel had monopoly on it apparently, and their members came here to pray.

Newton guessed that those members weren't anyone from Heatmore. Though, well, you should never judge a book by itscover. Maybe some of the citizens were part of that citadel and had come down here to be closer to their sacred spot.

Newton lifted Liesl into the passenger side of the motorvehicle and started the engine before driving back to the town in earnest. From the look of the volcano, it looked disturbed, but not ready to erupt and cause some serious damage. So, alerting the town to evacuate was just a safety precaution at this point. To do that they'd need a little help so… he was hoping that despite appearances that this town did indeed have a sheriff or two.

When Liesl next awoke, she was lying tucked up inside her own bed. At first this seemed completely natural, until the events from the previous few days all rushed back to her and made her start upright. Where was Newton? Where was her father? Had the volcano…?

The door to her room opened slowly, and she jumped.

"Hullo, chum." Newton greeted her cheerfully, though not without some surprise. Maybe he didn't think she'd have been awake yet.

"I bought you some coffee. And, obviously, a biscuit."

Liesl laughed, noting with concern how weak her voice sounded, and when she shifted around, she felt pain all over her skin and winced. Newton noticed and came to sit down on the side of her bed.

"Ah, yes, I did have someone look you over. They expected you to be in a little pain for a while, but luckily, you should recover completely quite soon!"

Liesl looked over the wax skin on her arms, seeing how it seemed thinner than usual. A little more heat and… she shuddered. The former noticed and gave her a sympathetic wince.

"Newton… what? What's happened? How long have I been asleep?"

"A… a few days." He admitted reluctantly. "Well, you did wake up once or twice, but you were so out of sorts I'm not surprised you don't remember!"

"Days??" She grabbed his shoulders urgently, "Where's my father and Joker and everyone? What about the town?"

"You don't need to worry about that anymore." He eased her back against the pillows. "It turns out this town does have a sheriff and it's been on a watch list for quite some time…!Including the Joker, even though they hadn't had any evidence on him until now. So, a whole lot of people came to help and they sorted it all out for us! They even got some talented creators to create a barrier around the volcano that'll re-direct the lava flow if it does erupt."

Liesl blew out a long breath, trying to digest all of Newton's story. "You… you sorted all of that out on your own. I'm sorry."

"It's quite alright, dear chum, it's about time I did something for this world instead of giving it grief." He chuckled, but looked a little downcast.

"I think you've more than made up for what you did." Liesl assured him. "It was just one mistake anyway; the rest was the titans. Your father should-

Father.

She remembered. "Where… Where's my father?"

A shadow fell across Newton's face, and he looked grim."He's in prison, along with the rest of them; Joker, the other donators, the guards… Everyone who knew anything. But Liesl… He explained to me everything that happened. I think it would be best if you heard most of it from him some day,but I think I can tell you that… he was thinking of you. He didn't want you to grow up here for the rest of your life. I think a lot of it was a want for justice." He finished quietly.

"Thinking of me. Sure." She sighed, tiredness creeping back up on her.

"As I said, I think you need to talk to him yourself, but I don't… I don't think he's a bad person. Even though some of his actions and motivations were a bit-" Newton waved his hand, "Uh… not… great. He cares about you, from what I can tell."

"Okay." Liesl muttered, her reality sinking in. So… she was on her own, now? Even Newton would be leaving soon, but what… what was she going to do?

He seemed to read her mind as he watched her face because he changed the subject. "Whilst you were, ah, unconscious, those creators helped me rebuild my ship, pleasant fellows. I even added some extra features." He smiled to himself, and Liesl almost smiled herself when she saw the glee in his eyes.

"So, you're leaving then?" She asked. "Thanks for… looking after me back there."

"Well- about that-" He lifted his eyes up to meet hers.

"Liesl, I was wondering…" Newton rubbed the back of his neck.

Her heart began to rise in hope, bringing back some light into her face.

She felt like she knew what he was going to ask, but…

"Well, whether you'd like to…"

Could she leave here? Could she leave this dull, dusty old town that she'd been sick and tired of since day one? The same place where she had had her first mugging experience, where her relationship with her father had crashed and burnt, a town full of creepy characters looking to gut you whichever way you turned?

He smiled at her bashfully. "Come with me?"

Duh, of course she could.


End file.
